This is perhaps the busiest time we have ever experienced. We are less than a week away from the start of the historic 2010 World Cup. We are in the midst of an exciting and successful outdoor season for MLS, USSF D-II, USL-2, and PDL.
We are organizing a series of major events including our area’s largest World Cup party, a national soccer combine, and our continued coverage of the Ohio Vortex offseason.
Our inbox is flooded with hundreds of e-mails each and every day. There is just so much going on.
Simply said: It is an amazing time to be a fan of soccer. This is the World Cup that will propel soccer into the mainstream here in the U.S. This is the year that we will see a significant increase in attendance at professional matches, particularly MLS. I think it is safe to say that we can expect a 10-15% increase in MLS ticket sales and TV viewership may be as high as a 20% increase.
Well with all that said, we want to talk about the news of the week. First, things continue to evolve and change over at WPS. Players from Saint Louis Athletica are finding homes elsewhere in the league. The consensus favorite here at ISN is the world’s best keeper, Hope Solo, who landed in Atlanta with the struggling Beat. Just to be clear when we refer to Solo as the best in the world we are talking men and women; she is that good.
The Red Stars found the replacement for Emma Hayes when they signed Omid Namazi as their new heach coach. I know a lot of people are down on the women’s league due to the failure of the Sol and now Athletica, but we believe the league will have a long and prosperous life here in the States. So we will move to increase our coverage of WPS in the very near future, so keep an eye out.
Two big pieces of news came from the men’s side: the U.S. defeat of Australia by a 3-1 margin and the likely transfer of Sacha Kljestan to a club in Belgium. Edson Buddle came up with two goals and another came from Herculez Gomez. Keep in mind both of these players were not projected to make the final 23 just a few months ago.
Kljestan is making big news on the world scene despite the fact that he did not make the final U.S. World Cup roster. Sacha has been linked to a move overseas for quite some time now. Here is the official word from Eduard Cauich with Chivas USA:
“There have been ongoing discussions between Chivas USA and a club about a possible transfer. Sacha Kljestan did not travel with the team in New York and won’t be available for tonight’s match against the Red Bulls. He’s at the moment with his agent discussing the matter. Many teams have shown interest in Sacha Kljestan and we obviously want the best for him but at the moment no transfer has been finalized.”
